This is my blog. So far most of the entries are about sports. Please check out my autism site at www.coachmike.net and my photography site at www.mikefrandsen.net. Please also see my sports articles at http://www.examiner.com/sports-in-washington-dc/mike-frandsen and http://bleacherreport.com/users/583899-mike-frandsen, my autism articles at http://www.examiner.com/dc-in-national/mike-frandsen, and www.myredskinsblog.com. By Mike Frandsen.

The Flint, Michigan lead in water crisis is in the spotlight now at the Democratic debate between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.

Here are a couple of articles about the lead crisis in water in Washington, D.C. and how the CDC lied to the public, while the D.C. government didn’t help the situation by botching the partial replacement of lead pipes with copper.

Lead causes brain damage and developmental disabilities, and fetuses, infants and developing children are especially affected.

Flint, Michigan, outside of Detroit, is having a serious crisis about lead in water, which is catastrophically toxic to fetuses, infants, and developing children. It can cause serious brain damage for them – and is merely very unhealthy for everyone else.

Beyond the stars who take the occasional – and sometimes not-so-occasional – visit to the blackjack and poker tables, casinos have also grown to become a large part of the NBA. Although the league has stayed away from casinos for a large part of its existence, restrictions have loosened in recent years. In fact, NBA spokesman Michael Bass has told NJ.com that 28 of the league’s 30 teams have inked sponsorship deals with casinos.

The recent entry of online gaming to New Jersey has even led to the Philadelphia 76ers signing a deal with an online gaming entity. What’s next, the Orlando Magic partnering up with Alchemy Bet – a gaming company that operates the online casino site Pocket Fruity? Or would the Washington “Wizards” make for a better thematic fit?

The NBA and its teams have also embraced the concept of casino night. Before you get into a tizzy, casino nights aren’t all about playing craps and pouring money into slot machines. They’re more like fan parties and charity fundraising events wrapped in the allure and excitement of a casino atmosphere. A casino night is a chance for teams to give back to the community and let fans meet their hardcourt heroes at the same time.

The Los Angeles Lakers used their 2013 casino night event to raise money for the Lakers Youth Foundation. By all accounts the star-studded event was a success, raising a grand total of $200,000. The 2013 edition of the Atlanta Hawks’ annual casino night was also held to raise money for the Atlanta Hawks Foundation’s community programming and grant-giving initiatives. The Hawks have already started selling tickets for this year’s casino night. A pretty noble gesture, and a heck of a lot of fun, too.

This guy Mike Tirico is such a jerk. He’s one of these self-righteous hypocrites who refuses to call the Redskins by their name and instead just says “Washington.” He wouldn’t say “Redskins” during the Redskins’ preseason game against Cleveland. People like this think that they can impose their opinions about the Redskins’ name controversy on everyone as if what they believe is correct. Why doesn’t Tirico speak out against sexual harassment?

I have a to do list a mile long but I felt compelled to post this. Sirius Satellite Radio Receivers have a warning on the box that says “This product contains chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.” That’s pretty startling. First, for people who dismiss this type of information, if a company actually posts a warning such as this, you know it’s serious. Second, what are you supposed to do? Should a woman who is about to get pregnant or already pregnant stay away from it? How far away? What about men? What are the dangerous chemicals?

We need much more, not less, regulation when it comes to safety. A quick google search found that no one seems to be caring or looking into this – all that came up was PDF documents and user guides.

It turns out that this foam wedge, designed to help people sleep on their side, has the following warning:

“We are providing the following warning for products linked to this page:

WARNING: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.”

About California Proposition 65

California’s Proposition 65 entitles California consumers to special warnings for products that contain chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm if those products expose consumers to such chemicals above certain threshold levels. We care about our customers’ safety and hope that the information below helps with your buying decisions.

Thank God for California, requiring companies to post these warnings, but the warnings are hard to see. You’d think the company, knowing its item contains chemicals that are “known to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm,” would at least sell the item with a cover, but no.

Will Washington Redskins coach Mike Shanahan and his son Kyle, the Redskins offensive coordinator, be fired after this year? Most likely the Redskins (3-6) will finish with only one winning season in the four years the Shanahan’s have been in Washington.

Another reason to hate Michael Wilbon – he advocates tanking – losing on purpose. He says you basically have to lose to get a great player in the NBA Draft. That about says it all about him. Wilbon is a loser.

At least we have the self-righteous Mike Wise here in D.C. It’s one thing for him to have his opinions on the Redskins name, but he tries to pompously shove it down everyone’s throat.

I had to mention that ESPN’s piece on NBA players visiting the Great Wall of China failed to mention that the Washington Bullets were the first team to do so back in 1979, which was very significant at the time. If any other NBA team had been there, ESPN would have mentioned it. It’s a shame that they have forgotten the Washington Bullets.